慾 meaning and stroke order
Passion, desire, lust; appetite
How to write 慾, stroke by stroke
15 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 慾
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- desire
- appetite
- passion
- lust
- greed
How 慾 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. The heart's 心 desire 欲; 欲 also provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 心 (heart), shared by 97 characters on this site.
How to remember 慾
慾 is 欲 (yù, to want) sitting on top of 心 (xīn, heart). When wanting comes from the heart, it becomes a strong passion or desire.
慾 is the traditional written form used in Taiwan and Hong Kong for desire, especially strong or bodily desire. In mainland simplified Chinese it is merged into 欲, so words like 食欲 (shíyù, appetite) and 欲望 (yùwàng, desire) are written with 欲. Example: 他的慾望很強。(Tā de yùwàng hěn qiáng.) His desires are very strong.
Common mistake: Learners often think 慾 and 欲 are always interchangeable. 慾 only covers the noun sense of desire, while 欲 also means 'to want' or 'about to', as in 搖搖欲墜 (yáoyáo yù zhuì, about to collapse), which is never written with 慾.
Common words with 慾
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
Questions about 慾
How many strokes are in 慾?
慾 is written with 15 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 慾 mean?
慾 (yù) means passion, desire, lust; appetite. A common word with it is 食欲 (shíyù), meaning "appetite".
How do you pronounce 慾?
慾 is pronounced yù, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 慾?
The radical of 慾 is 心, which carries the idea of "heart". Dictionaries list 慾 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 慾?
慾 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 欲, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Should I use 慾 or 欲 when writing?
In simplified Chinese, always use 欲. In traditional Chinese, many writers use 慾 for nouns like 慾望 and 食慾, though 欲 is also accepted.
Does 慾 always have a negative or sexual meaning?
No. It can be neutral, as in 食慾 (shíyù, appetite). It does appear often in words about lust, like 性慾 (xìngyù) and 肉慾 (ròuyù), so context matters.